New Care Initiatives Hospice office opens
By AMY HANSEN CNA staff reporter ahansen@crestonnews.com
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| People gather in front of the front-desk area for the opening of the new Care Initiatives Hospice office in Greenfield Tuesday afternoon. Before this office, staff met at Creston Nursing and Rehab Center, also owned by Care Initiatives. Vice President of Care Initiatives Hospice Bill Havekost said he is excited for the new office because it offers a more central location for their service area. |
GREENFIELD — Proper education and knowledge on a subject can foster more understanding, acceptance and willingness. That is one of the reasons why Vice President of Care Initiatives Hospice Bill Havekost is excited for the new office in Greenfield.
“Having another office provides more access to people who might be considering hospice care or would like to consider hospice care,” Havekost said. “It just sort of puts it a little more on top of the public mind and other health-care partners.”
Care Initiatives is Iowa’s largest not-for-profit senior care provider with 56 nursing homes, assisted livings and independent livings throughout the state.
The new hospice office in Greenfield is located at 122 Public Square. Its staff consists of a full-time nurse and social worker, hospice aide, spiritual care/bereavement counselor, dietician, medical director, associate medical director, pharmacist, office coordinator, community representative volunteer coordinator and team direct or.
Team Director Dustie Burton said current plans are to bring in one more hospice aide and nurse.
New opportunities
Previously, the staff was hosted at the Creston Nursing and Rehab Center, also owned by Care Initiatives, while waiting for accreditation and certification in Greenfield.
Havekost said he always wanted to have an office in Greenfield.
“The reason we wanted to be in Greenfield is because it puts us a little bit more central in our service area than we were able to do in Creston,” he said.
Havekost said Care Initiatives strives to make hospice care as easy on the patients as can be.
“We go wherever the patients happen to reside whether it be in a nursing home, their home, their daughter’s home or a hospital,” he said. “Wherever the need may be, we follow the patient rather than the patient coming to us.”
Havekost said another goal of hospice care is to relieve the stress of the patients and their families.
“What we do is help a patient and family identify what quality of life looks like for them at this point in their lives,” he said, “and then, we move heaven and earth to try to make that happen.”
Havekost said beyond the regular staff, there is a core group of people with particular resources such as massage, aroma and music therapies who may be brought in to fill the need and become part of the care plan for the patient.
Working together
Burton said another exciting aspect of the new office is a large meeting room for the staff to utilize. She said this has improved their teamwork and camaraderie.
“We’ve been able to come together and function as a team in an area that is solely working with hospice,” Burton said.
Havekost said he was most impressed by the reception of the community toward the new office. He has seen a lot of positive comments and endorsements.
“Hospice care doesn’t work if we can’t work with the community assets,” he said. “Everyone has been very welcome to tap into their assets and help us use them to provide care to people at the end of their lives. This is a warm reminder this is Iowa, and I love that.”
